U-turn in rental car damage claim dispute

Note from Cathy: Please welcome Yi-ke Peng, the author of this post. She was on Advocate patrol while I was on assignment and vacation. A recent graduate of Cornell University with a bachelor of arts degree in history, Yi-ke is a guest journalist participating in a Hearst Corporation fellowship.

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The LaRosa family of Rensselaer insists a rental car was returned undamaged after their family vehicle was repaired following an accident.

How could they have missed a dented front fender and a broken-off side mirror when they returned the rental car, as the damage claim from Enterprise Rent-A-Car reported?

“Rental car companies have a few tricks up their sleeves,” Jennifer LaRosa’s mother, Katherine LaRosa, said. Enterprise dropped the claim when The Advocate stepped in, but a mystery remains as to what really happened. And this case offers lessons to anyone who rents a vehicle.

The story began last month. After Jennifer LaRosa, 21, got into a car accident, Geico, her insurance company, directed her to H&V Collision Center in Troy, where Geico has an auto express repair shop. H&V Collision Center provided her with one of the Enterprise cars it had on site while the car was repaired. A walkaround showed that everything was fine with the rental car when she picked it up, Katherine LaRosa said.

Ten days later, the LaRosas returned to H&V Collision Center to pick up their repaired car and drop off the rental car. No walkaround was conducted, but Katherine LaRosa says the rental car was returned undamaged.

Six days later, the LaRosas received a call from Enterprise saying that it had gotten the car back, everything was fine and it was closing their account.

The next day, however, the LaRosas received a letter from Enterprise saying that the rental car the LaRosas had returned was damaged, and that Enterprise had submitted a claim to its insurance company.

When Katherine LaRosa called Enterprise, manager John Neuberger of the Troy branch of the company told her that the driver’s side mirror was knocked off and the front fender was dented.

According to Katherine LaRosa, H&V Collision later told her that if there was any damage, Enterprise was legally required to notify her within 48 hours of when she dropped off the car. So why wasn’t she notified earlier?

Neuberger’s response was that Enterprise had tried to contact her, but could not reach her, Katherine LaRosa said.

What’s odd is that Enterprise did not use the contact number LaRosa put down on the contract, which was for her cellphone, Katherine LaRosa said. Instead, Neuberger claimed to have called her home phone and a number that used to be Katherine LaRosa’s husband’s business phone, neither of which the LaRosas had provided, Katherine LaRosa said. She presumed Enterprise had used contact information from five years ago, when they last rented a car from Enterprise.

But Enterprise clearly had her cellphone number all along, Katherine LaRosa said, since a representative had called her at that number the day before she received the letter.

When Katherine LaRosa’s husband, Anthony, went to the Troy branch the next day, Enterprise employees told him that the car was in the body shop. They were not forthcoming about which shop it was, and they could not produce proof of the damage, Katherine LaRosa said.

H&V Collision Center’s vice president, Vartan Jieran, said that he has personally reviewed the security video and found that no one went near the LaRosas’ returned rental car until an Enterprise representative came to pick it up. Jieran admitted it’s possible to zoom in on the video to try to see if the side mirror was damaged, but said that it would take hours and he didn’t have the time.

I can understand that he would not want to recheck the video ASAP, but this would seem to be an easy way to clear up the dispute. I find it disconcerting that this is not on his to-do list.

Neuberger refused to comment when I called.

Laura Bryant, a spokeswoman for Enterprise Holdings, told The Advocate that Enterprise cars are often returned at a location other than the rental office, but the renter still remains liable for any damages until the car is picked up and inspected by Enterprise.

This policy seems unreasonable. How can renters still be responsible for what happens after the cars are dropped off?

What’s more, in this case, the LaRosas were not aware that they weren’t leaving their rental car at the rental office. There is an Enterprise desk inside H&V Collision Center, and Katherine LaRosa said she was confused as to which company she was dealing with. H&V Collision Center should have made it clear that it is a separate entity from Enterprise, and when a customer drops off a car there, the rental transaction is not yet complete.

My phone calls to Enterprise stirred some action. Katherine LaRosa soon received a call from the district manager who said Enterprise is dropping the claim — the company acknowledges it was at fault for not notifying her earlier.

I’m thrilled The Advocate could help in this case, and that Enterprise did the right thing by dropping the claim. But I’m left wondering about what really happened to the vehicle.

The Advocate suggests to anyone who rents a car to make sure it is inspected before you leave the rental lot. Insist on a receipt that the vehicle was inspected when dropped off, and of course familiarize yourself with the full rental policy before you rent the car.

10 Responses

Check online for details as to how the rental car companies operate. Claims like these seem to be too common. I have no axe to grind, but there are an awful lot of complaints that echo this scenario out there. Take pictures upon drop off, and never leave a rental w/o a receipt stating no new damage since pick-up. And READ everything they write or fill in. Protect yourselves, people.

I would never rent from Enterprise again. Quite a few years ago, we were in an accident and had an Enterprise car. We later found out that they were billing the insurance company a totally different price than the agreed upon price in our contract, of course finding out since we had to pay a portion. They were rude and wouldn’t discuss it with us until our insurance agent stepped in on our behalf. Then they fixed it. Sneaky.

If I have to bring a camera with me to take pictures of the rental car I’m leaving off, then that alone is proof that rental car companies operate are prone to ripping off the customer, and not the case that consumers aren’t “reading the fine print.”

It is the responsibility of the rental agent to TELL THE CUSTOMER of the conditions regarding the drop off. If there is indeed a raise in complaints of this nature, then it is because the car rental companies are pulling a fast one on the public, hoping that they will break a condition of the rental agreement and hike the fees they charge, assuming that most of their customers do not read their ever-changing fine print.

Good thing the advocate is around to help protect us from these predatators.

Always had great experiences with the folks at H&V. Have brought two of my personal vehicles, recommended family and friends to them, and the service and care has been outstanding. Will not hesitate to recommend H&V in the future.

Also why its recommended to get insurance though the car rental agency instead of using your personal collision insurance. I have heard horror stories about vacationers in florida from our insurance company that used their normal insurance and someone at Disney did a hit and run on them and they had to pay their own deductable and front the entire repair cost until their insurance settled everything after a month or two.

We had a similar instance with Enterprise (also would never rent from them again). Took a rental car at Portland Airport, badly lit and wet from washing. Walk around showed nothing. Upon return, they found a number of dents on the roof that were blamed on us. Luckily, we had charged it with Amex, and had the additional car rental coverage through them (the 9.95 plan that they add to the charge). They handled everything, including negotiating the repairs. Moral of the story, never take the car in a dark parking garage, insist on all marks to be notated on the contract, and unless you’re willing to pay for all the rental car coverages, get something like Amex’s plan.

I am currently going through this nightmare myself. I rented a car from Entreprise while my car was being fixed and just yesterday I got a letter informing me of “damages”!

When I rented the car, not only was no walk around conducted WITH me, but they gave me a vehicle that was different to the one I had asked for. Since I was pressed for time, I didn’t argue with the car I was given.

When I returned it, the representative told me that the front bumper was loose on one corner. I informed him that I had not gotten into any accidents/mishaps/scrapes/incidents that could’ve caused ANY damage to the car. Furthermore, I keep the car parked in private garages both at home and at work (the only places the vehicle was located while in my possession). He even acknowledged that there were no scrapes, scratches, dents or marks on the bumper. He said it was very likely a loose screw. I filled out my paperwork and left. My paperwork indicated that there was no accident and that I had no knowledge of the “damage”. He promised to follow up with me on Monday if there was a claim. He didn’t. TWO WEEKS LATER I get a letter in the mail stating that I am responsible for damages. When I asked what the damages were they told me they were dents near the rear passenger door. This was never discussed or mentioned to me when I did the return walk around. It’s not on my paperwork, no one called me to tell me about it. I feel completely victimized. I feel like they probably damaged the vehicle themselves and are trying to pin it on me. What makes this all worse is that they do this to countless people. One could liken this to highway robbery and it’s disgusting how commonplace this practice is. Its a matter of principle and I will do whatever it takes to fight their spurious claim.

It doesn’t take much looking online to see there are a lot of us Enterprise victims. I took my car into a dealership for required work and was given a dripping-wet Enterprise rental car (the better to hide dings and scratches, I have apparently now learned) instead of a loaner as promised.

I returned the car to the dealer the next day undamaged after it spent the night in my garage. The day after that, I received a call from Enterprise alleging minor damage ($490 worth) to the car that they stated they intended to charge to me, despite no evidence of me causing damage and the dealer having possession of the car for a day. I was informed by the national office they would look into it.

Now, a month later, I am being called by a collections agency on this! I actually rent cars during travel relatively often, and have never had this type of experience from other rental companies, nor from a dealer coercing me into a rental car situation.

If you have been the victim of a similar problem with Enterprise and would like to be part of a possible class action lawsuit, please contact me at althepa at yahoo dot com (written longhand to avoid spam, hopefully!) Thank you.

I’m currently going through the same thing. I had a rental car overnight, I returned the car and they suggested I damaged it. The rep said it looked like I was hit by a shopping cart. Where he indicated, there was no visible damage. And since the only place I went was Target, and they have red, hard plastic shopping carts, damage would be evident. They dropped the subject, and I went on my way. I never acknowledged damage at the time. I got a letter several months later (according to them they didn’t have my complete address- missing apartment number) claiming I owed $861 in damages. I called immediately, denied the damage and said their claim was incredibly inflated. I asked for proof, they sent pictures take *2 1/2 MONTHS* after I returned the car. At the point I turned it over to my insurance, who denied the claim multiple times. When faced with the time stamp on the photos, the Enterprise rep said that was the date they received the photos. But when we looked at the date of the estimate, it was dated the same day. Again, my insurance co denied the claim. My insurance co demanded proof I acknowledged the damage, like a damage report that is supposed to be filled out at the time of return, and Enterprise never provided one. Again, my insurance denied the claim. The final volley from Enterprise was that when I called, I never denied the damage, I only objected to the amount of the estimate. At that point, my insurance settles (for which I’m dropping them, since the decision was made mainly because it was cheaper for them to settle than it was to fight further), leaving me with $600 in deductible and fees. I’m fighting this tooth and nail, emailed the Ca Dep’t of Consumer Affairs, the CA Insurance Commissioner, and the BBB. I sent a letter demanding the required proof and paperwork to show I damaged the car, and they haven’t contacted me. If I don’t hear from them within the week, I’m sending another letter, giving them a deadline in which to send it. If they don’t, I’m emailing the CEO Andy Taylor with the entire story.

Because of this incident, not only will I never rent from Enterprise (or their other companies, National and Alamo), but many of my friends have also decided to never rent from them again. This is the kind of “customer service” that leads to a lifetime of boycotting the company.